Who’s On First?
How does the PUD decide who gets restored first in large outages? Safety is the PUD’s first priority. PUD crews must eliminate any imminent danger to human life. The PUD also prioritizes restoration of power to the hospital and emergency management facilities, as well as restoring power to grocery stores and pharmacies. After these factors are considered, the PUD generally responds to outage incidents where the largest number of customers affected, with repair work often following this order:
1. Transmission Lines
2. Substations
3. Three phase distribution lines
4. Single phase distribution lines
5. Secondary distribution lines.
Transmission lines take power to or between substations. Three phase lines deliver power from the substation into the community. Single phase lines carry power into neighbor hoods. Secondary distribution lines lead directly to homes or businesses.